HK 525 vs. Onkyo TX-SR800 (1 Viewer)

[Mohammed L]

I'm having a tough time with choosing between the HK and the Onkyo, as they are similar in price and features. Does anyone have any suggestions on which one I should choose? I'm going to be using this for about 75% HT and 25% Music.

Mo

 

[MikeRP]

I think there is 4 main competitors in this arena. The Onkyo 800 and 900, Denon 3803, HK 525 and the Pioneer 43 and 45 TX.

Now, I think they are all good machines. So, you really need to take a close look at the features that are important to you.

I think the HK 525 is great. But, its really a tough decision - i have the Pioneer 45 TX and I love the MCACC auto calibration feature. Its hard to beat. But, HK's amp's are hard to beat.

So, its really a nail bitter decision. Mine was easy 'cause the Pioneer was the only one of the 4 out when I was in need of a purchase. It would be a hard decision. now.

Good Luck!

Mike

 

[JeremyX]

If there are four, there are actually five I think...
...Don't forget the Marantz 7300, great reviews, similarly priced and smimilar feature set.
I am in the same arena here...but I narrowed it down to the Marantz and the Onkyo...can't decide. :frowning:

 

[Mohammed L]

Thanks for the help so far guys!, but i'm still a little confused. I talked to someone at Visions (another big electronics store like future shop or best buy) and his opinion was that since the HK did not have the pricy THX chips inside, that HK must have been able to spend more money on the quality of the receiver and therefore the HK had to be better for the same price. I don't really think this is true, but I guess I could be wrong. I was originally hooked on Onkyo, but now I'm back in between and I'm really confused to which way to go. As for the Pioneer Elite, these amps are also amazing, but too pricy for me.(especially in canadian dollars). Marantz or Denon would be great too i'm sure, but since i'm already confused as it is, I think it might be best to just stick with either the HK or the Onkyo. Another problem is that there is nowhere to really audition these two amps side by side on the same set of speakers. I couldn't believe it but after looking around I haven't found a place in Vancouver that has both brands side by side with a push button control to change between amps. If anyone knows of a place, that'd be a great help too!

Thanx

MO

 

[Steve_Han]

what about yamaha, especially for HT?

I am between hk 520 and Yamaha v1300?

Wondering if 6.1 will really make a big difference...

 

[Chris Drenner]

i had heard that the onkyo units dont make the power that they say they do,
and the hk makes the power they are rated at if not more.
thats why im choosing the hk avr 525 for myself

 

[Mohammed L]

Is that really true about the Onkyo receivers? that the 800 doesn't put out 100WattsX7 and the HK does put out 75x7?
If so, that's seems pretty odd of onkyo to do that, I mean I'd expect it from some other companies, but onkyo?

MO

 

[Gabriel_Lam]

The new Onkyo's can hit their 100 watt rating, but not with all channels driven. Honestly, their older ones were a lot more stout.

 

[David Nash]

Don't get caught up in the watts rating game. It's all in the sound quality. I have the Onkyo 797, the predecessor to the 800 and I rarely listen to it turned up much past reference level. Unless of course I wanted to knock the drywall off the walls. I also have it set to 4ohms driving Definitive Tech speakers and have had zero problems. I am very satisfied with Onkyo for HT. I have never heard the HK 520 before so I can't comment on it, even though I chose the Onkyo 797 over the HK 520 when I made my decision. I was advised the Onkyo is usually better for HT and the HK for music. The Onkyo offered more of what I needed and so far I have been very pleased with it's reliability and performance.
Good Luck,
David

 

[joe rizzuto]

i have 2 onkyo receivers, both entry level,one older. they work great, so far no problems with either. when i was researching the first, onkyo consistantly got slightly better marks than marantz for no noise in the channels and for understating their power ratings.
in truth, you really need to listen to them and 'see' if you can hear a difference and if so, pick your favorite.

 

[Mohammed L]

I guess i'm gonna have to convince some store here to put them side by side and hear them! Oh well, thanks for your help guys, it's really appreciated. hopefully i'll be able to eventually choose.

Thanks again

MO

 

[Yogi]

Forget wattage ratings. If there is any reason to pick up a HK (or Marantz) over Onkyo (or Yamaha) it would be sound. Period. Warm, lush, full bodied sound of the HK (or Marantz) goes well with a lot of different speaker types. This is not to say that the Yam or Onk are not good receivers. I think they are excellent receivers but slightly forward and need better matching with speakers to produce a neutral sound. Unless you like forward sound then you have no reason to worry by going with Onk or Yam. So choose based on your tastes. Listen for yourself and choose based on sound and features. Dont worry about watts. Most modern receivers from reputed makers (Denon, Marantz, HK, Yamaha, Onkyo, NAD, Sony-ES and Elite) will drive moderate sized HTs to reference levels without a problem.

My 2 cents.

 

[mike_doyle]

Forget wattage ratings. If there is any reason to pick up a HK (or Marantz) over Onkyo (or Yamaha) it would be sound. Period. Warm, lush, full bodied sound of the HK (or Marantz) goes well with a lot of different speaker types.

i totally agree... my H/K AVR 320 is only rated at 55W x 5 but it has crisp clean sound at all volume levels... (up to -15 so far)Needless to say it blows away my old 100W x 5 receiver
Remember it takes double the wattage for every 3 dB gain. I havent needed those extra 3 dB's yet

 

[Ben McGuire]

If you are thinking about the 525:

ECost.com has the 525 for $618.82 shipped to your door (free ground shipping).

Check it out here

A couple of other places have it for $650.00 like Crazy Eddie and Etronics. I'm probably going to have to pick one of these up soon. I just have to sell one of my old receivers first.

 

[Ben McGuire]

Apparently the link didn't work.
Try this

 

[Gabriel_Lam]

If you decide to get the AVR525 from eCost, consider using this link to support Home Theater Forum:
AVR525 at eCost through HTF

 

[Chuck Watwood]

I just purchased the Onkyo TX-SR800 about two weeks ago. I am very happy with it so far. I listened to the HK 525. Both sound good. Its true that the Onkyo does sound a bit bright, however, in my opinion, that is great for home theatre. I also prefer it for music. And when I say bright, were talking about a crisp, accurate sound, at least to my ears. I matched it up with some Polk RTi speakers, 4 ohm speakers, and its got all the power you will need to all 7 channels unless you have a severe hearing deficiency. I have played mine above reference levels, and its almost too much. I had no problems at all. The amps do get warm, just don't enclose the amp, most amps will tell you the same. The Onkyo has just about every listening mode you could ever want, DD EX, DTS ES, and TXC select certification. One of the best parts about the Onkyo is the learning, easy to use, remote. It takes a little time to program, however, I have reduced my pile of remotes to one, just the Onkyo. Onkyo also has a feature to reduce the brightness of the sound, RE-EQ, if you want a lusher sound. Try demoing that. I'm very happy with mine. Good luck on you're decision. Either way you'll be happy I'm sure.

 

[Matt D K]

I have had them both in my home within the last 2 weeks. Started with the HK, then the Onkyo. They are both really nice receivers. The 2 things I didn't like about the HK were:
1 Much more difficult to operate (ie wife proof) It doesn't automatically switch composite/SVHS video sources. The surround feilds are much more difficult to operate.

2 Believe it or not, the picture quality on the HK was not nearly as good as the Onkyo. If you are going to use this as a home theater control center, this is a big consideration.

I can't comment on the power comparisons, as I am using external amplifiers.

 

[Wayne Ernst]

Matt,

Since you appear to be using the Onkyo as a pre/pro, what made you decide on the SR800 vs the SR700 since the '700' has pre-outs also? I'm just curious. Thanks!!

 

[Ben Hanrahan]

I agree with all who warn about the wattage game. I hope everyone realizes that with these multichannel amps (7 channels) performance will suffer greatly if the power supply isn't sufficient. I think HK doesn't skimp in this area, although Onkyo is no slouch...My personal preference is a laid back high end and overall warmth...Yamaha?? Good lord, I can barely listen to those...they highs are too harsh for me. Why are they harsh? Most likely distortion or amplifier clipping.

Maybe you could track down a 520 for a good price, only 5 channel of amplification built in...which is better than 7 IMHO. But if you're gonna get something with 7 channels built in, it has to be the HK or the Onkyo, I just wouldn't trust the power supply in a Yamaha to get the job done.

Good luck!